Oh Eight Hundred
by Puddlesama
Summary: 5 wake up calls, 4 years, 3 words, 2 people, 1 happy ending. AC. One-Shot.


I know I should be writing the next installment of Roadtrip. But you see, I have this chronic condition. When I'm distracted, I need to write other stories in order to focus on the ones I really need to write. I know of no pills that cure this strangeness. If you do, pass some along!

Also, this plot bunny has been poking at my brain for carrots all evening.

* * *

**Oh Eight Hundred

* * *

**

"Make sure you wake me up at 8, okay?"

Athrun's roommate was strange. At least this was the opinion he'd formed of her in the last two months they lived together. He'd found her on an online roommate matching service. There was some flamboyant explanation on how this website matched people on compatibility instead of randomly placing people together. To him all this flare was unnecessary. All that mattered to him was that his roommate paid the rent on time. What he or she did in the rest of their time was none of his concern.

Cagalli never let anyone in her room. However, she needed to be up for her first day of classes. She had set the alarm - actually three - but used her roommate as a failsafe just in case. It could safely be said that she was not a morning person.

The next morning Athrun knocked on her door at 7:58 am.

"I'm up. Thanks!" The response was almost immediate.

"Okay. Good morning." He said through the door before making his way to the kitchen.

Two minutes later he heard an alarm sounded of. Five seconds later the second one chimed in. A third joined the annoying choir another five seconds after that. Athrun smiled to himself despite his aching eardrums. If he hurt this much down the hallway, there was no way she could sleep though that racket. He grabbed his coffee thermos and headed out to campus. While both of them studied at the same university, he was in engineering and she was enrolled as a business major with a minor in political sciences. Their paths would rarely cross unless they wished it. It also meant that he begun and ended classes before she did.

Athrun was home in the early evening and was greeted by an empty condo. He switched on the television and settled into the couch with his laptop. He was a multitasker; his attention wandered easily, although he didn't look the type. Cagalli was home as soon as her evening classes were done.

"Did you make it to your morning class?" He asked after usual pleasantries were exchanged.

"Nah." Her response surprised him. She'd managed to sleep through all those alarms? "But, university profs don't care at all if I'm late. It's not like high school at all!"

Cagalli noticed that Athrun was distracted by something on the television. "Won't be needing you to wake me up anymore I guess." She added, not wanting to leave the conversation hanging.

"Good. I don't like to fail." They shared a smile before she proceeded to her room.

_Strange_, Athrun affirmed.

* * *

"Make sure you wake me up at 8, okay?"

Athrun hadn't heard that since the first day of class. It was now exam time and there were no more classes. He wondered why she needed to be up so early. She was a nocturnal studier. He knew she didn't have any morning exams because their exam schedules were magnetically attached to the fridge.

"I have an interview," she said, reading his mind. "It's important. Make sure I'm up."

The next morning Athrun knocked on her door at 7:58 am.

"I'm up. Thanks!" The response was almost immediate again.

"You sure?" He confirmed, receiving a "Yeah, I'm good," in response.

Satisfied, he returned to his room to study for his noon exam. He wasn't much for last minute studying, but needed as much of it as he could afford for this course. Before he could resume studying, the trio of alarm clocks went off in the adjacent room. Thankfully she shut them off almost immediately after they began their deafening ringing. This also assured him that she was out of bed. He studied diligently till 11:00 am before he decided to head to campus. He'd walk the scenic route to clear his head before his exam. He wasn't sure if clearing his head moments before the exam was a good decision, but he was convinced he needed it to retain his sanity.

His exam has been excruciatingly long. He discussed a few of the answers with the boy who wrote the exam next to him. Anger seemed to be a genetic trait in him. His phone vibrated in his pocket and he tended to it, much to the irritation of his companion.

"I'm sorry Yzak, I need to take this." He excused himself despite being on the receiving end of the steely grey cut eye he slightly feared.

"Yeah," he answered the phone. Caller ID told him it was his enthusiastic roommate. Maybe she'd gotten the job.

"Why didn't you wake me up!?" She yelled through the microphone, forcing him to hold his phone away from his ear. He was glad his bluetooth headset was not connected.

"I did!" He insisted, "I even heard you turn off your alarms!" He instinctively walked toward home. He reached their condo before their childish conversation ended.

Cagalli flung open the door and flailed her fists at him. "Why would you just knock? Who just knocks?"

Athrun was taken aback by the physical attack and dodged her loose punches. "What the fuck! You don't like when people go into your room! You don't even let your friends in there!"

"Well, you can come into my room! I live with you! We cook food together! We eat together! Now, I'm going to starve because I have no work over the winter holidays." Cagalli looked heartbroken as she sank into the doorframe.

Athrun sighed. "How the hell did you develop the habit of talking and switching off alarms in your sleep?" he asked, pulling her up from the floor. They'd gained the unwanted attention of a few of the gossiping neighbours and he wanted to take this inside as quickly as he could.

"Well, I was awake when you knocked and I got out of bed to switch off the alarms."

"Then?"

"I fell back to sleep halfway through getting dressed." At this, Athrun chuckled.

"It's not funny!" Cagalli insisted, punching his arm. She was stronger than she looked, although he didn't cringe.

"Okay, okay. I'll speak to the manager at the bar I work at and see if he needs another waitress, okay?" This was his peace offering.

"And..."

"And?"

"And you'll walk into my room and wake me up properly next time?"

Athrun laughed at her and ruffled her hair. "Yes."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

Cagalli broke out into her trademark toothy grin. He'd seen it many times when she had her friends over, but this was the first time it had been directed towards her. She was a very warm person.

"Want to go out for dinner?" she asked, and their evening continued as usual.

* * *

"Make sure you wake me up at 8, okay?"

_This again_, Athrun mused. "What is it this time?"

"A date," she said, turning to bat her eyelashes at him like the girly girl she wasn't.

This was the first he'd heard of her love life since they moved in together a year ago. "What kind of date are you going on at 8 in the morning?" It was too late to watch the sunrise.

"Well, it's brunch at 10:30, but I should probably doll up. He's borderline metrosexual and I would like to be the prettier of the two."

"Uh huh," Athrun slurred. So, she went for the metrosexual kind. The thought amused him because she was so down-to-earth. It was comic imagining her with a superficial man. Then again, he wasn't one to talk. He liked barbie girls because they made him feel needed. He liked the thought of being needed. This would probably amuse her.

"What is that? You don't think I can be pretty?" Her face was scrunched in concern.

"I have my doubts," he teased.

"Oh you just wait and see! I will blow you away with my sexiness tomorrow." She said childishly. "You'll be jealous for sure."

Athrun only laughed and asked, "Do you like mushrooms in your soup?"

"I love mushrooms in everything!" She chimed.

Athrun did not know when they'd fallen into their convenient routines. He would cook and she would clean. He would repair electronics while she handled everything else from plumbing to door hinges. She refused to change burnt out light bulbs because she'd burned her fingertips once. They would watch How It's Made at 7 and then So You Think You Can Dance at 8, followed by whatever comedy shows reruns that played subsequently. A year in and it felt as though they'd grown up together.

The next morning Athrun knocked on her door at 7:58 am.

"I'm up. Thanks!" The response was almost immediate as usual.

"I think your brain is preprogrammed to say that whenever people knock before 10 am." Athrun said, opening the door to her bedroom. She was lying on her stomach and looked up at him when she heard the door creak.

"Mm," she looked wired and by proxy awake.

"Should I make breakfast or will that spoil brunch?" He asked as he watched her stretch out like a cat, her face into the pillow.

"It'll spoil brunch," was her muffled reply.

"Okay, well, get out of bed. You need to beautify, remember."

She pushed herself up into kneeling position and sleepily droned, "Good morning." He smiled thinking how much her movements resembled that of a caterpillar.

"Morning," he called out from halfway down the hall.

An hour had passed and Athrun had finished cooking and eating his lazy Saturday morning breakfast. Today was his day off and he needed something to do. Gazing at the clock, he noted that it was ten past nine. He decided to shower and check up on Cagalli's glamour status. He imagined her with a messy, tangled hair and smeared make-up as she wept to her reflection. He'd rarely seen her with make up on and she always opted for the bare essentials.

He peeked into her room. The door was slightly ajar as he had left it, so he did not need to worry about making sounds that would betray his stealth.

"Cagalli!" He yelled exasperated. "What are you doing still in bed?" By this point he'd flung the door open.

Cagalli's eyes opened slowly, still heavy with sleep. "What? Sleeping. Duh."

"It's nine," he stated calmly, switching on the light.

Her eyes squeezed shut. "Light makes me sleepier." She warned.

"What happened to blowing me away with your sexiness."

"I'll make you jealous some other day."

"So I should wake you up at..."

"...Ten."

He left her alone for the next hour, turning off the light on his way out. It had been a while since he'd watched Saturday morning cartoons. He was amused by the childishness of Gundam Wing and Digimon Frontier. They seemed so juvenile now that he wondered how he ever watched them. As the ending credits to Digimon Frontier rolled to the beat of some pop infused song, he made his way over to Cagalli's room for a third time.

"Cagalli," he called, standing over her bed. "Its ten."

She turned away from him and mumbled. "Five more minutes."

"You need to at least brush your teeth, shower and put decent clothes on before your date show up."

"That'll only take 20 minutes. I can sleep ten more minutes, but I'm asking for five."

"He'll be here ten minutes early."

"No one shows up early."

"No, only you don't show up early. Most guys do, especially of the metrosexual variety."

"Five, please." She was begging.

"Your five minutes are already gone. Come on, get out of bed already."

"It's your fault."

"What!? How is your narcelepcy my fault?"

"If we didn't play monopoly till so late, I'd not be sleep deprived."

"You've slept well over eight hours, and we were up playing monopoly because you refused to quit."

"Well, I wanted to win."

"Which you didn't."

"If we played again, I'd kick your ass," she challenged.

"Don't be so bitter. Just because you're majoring in business, I don't expect you to be good at it." He teased.

She rolled over, successfully cocooning herself in her sheets. The glare she fixed on him was not friendly. "I challenge you to a rematch."

"Please," he slurred, "What makes you think I have all day to play around with you?"

"You're just afraid of failure," she concluded to his disapproval.

"I bet I'll win every single time we play."

The pair of them were in a habit of engaging in childish and pointless arguments on occasion. This was one such occasion. Their heated quarrel was interrupted by the doorbell.

"That's your boyfriend." Athrun predicted.

"He's not my boyfriend!" She interjected.

"...and it's only 10:20." He finished

"Shit. I'm not ready." She stated the obvious, trying to untangle herself from the sheets.

"I told you to get out of bed earlier!" He liked saying things in the I-told-you-so tone.

"Shit, shit. Umm," Cagalli looked around for an answer to her problem but only saw the mess in her room. "Tell him I'm sick."

"You want me to tell a guy who has made his way to our front door a lie?" Athrun asked, aghast at her request.

"Please just do it." Cagalli pleaded, "Don't go spawning a conscience on me now."

He sighed in defeat and made his way to the door. He felt horrible turning away a boy who'd gone to the lengths of bringing her flowers, but felt that it was for the better. She probably didn't deserve him or his flowers.

"He is a flaming metrosexual by the way." He said, closing the door and turning to his roommate. "There is nothing borderline about it."

"Isn't he pretty?" She grinned, proud of herself in the way fishermen were when they'd rope in the big one. "Of course, I'll never see him again. No guy asks me out after seeing me with you." She looked disheartened.

"Why?" He asked, amused by the idea.

"I don't know. I guess we look good together or they think they can't compete with you." She hypothesized.

"Oh?" Cagalli did not like the egotistic smile on his face. "Aren't we a heartbreaker, little Miss Cagalli?" He teased.

"I'm not as bad as you." She rolled her eyes at him, leaning against the wall.

"Excuse me?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Don't think I don't know your reputation Mr. Ladykiller."

"A heartbreaker and a ladykiller..." Athrun's voice trailed off, leaving the possibility out on the floor. After a few moments of dramatic silence they burst out into laughter.

"As if!" They said simultaneously, through their chuckles.

"So, what do you want to do today?" She knew it was his day off.

"Well, now that you're in the picture we could go rock climbing." He suggested. After all, most indoor rock climbing gyms required partners.

"I'll go shower." She said heading to the bathroom.

"I'll make you brunch." He called after her, moving towards the kitchen.

"For the record," she yelled from the bathroom, "you failed to wake me up yet again."

Before he could respond, he heard the heavy wooden door slam shut.

* * *

"Make sure you wake me up at 8, okay?"

"No," was his resolute response.

She rushed to his side on the couch, her eyes wide. "Why!?" she asked in an exasperated tone.

"Because you can not wake up at 8 am and you need to deal with this reality."

"Come on, please, please, _please_," she pleaded, wrapping her arms around his neck affectionately. It had been two and a half years since he'd met the energetic blond. In this time she had gone from a girl who would separate their butter and salt to a friend who would randomly pounce him on the street and walk beside him with their arms linked. They had progressed from chatting about the weather to discussing the men and women they dated and held short relationships with. They graduated from awkward silences to easily discussing their dreams for the future.

Yet, waking Cagalli at 8 am was not a task Athrun was willing to challenge ever again. "No."

"I have to take my friend to the hospital." She had his interest. "I mean, this guy she likes is taking her but she can't be alone with him so I promised her I'd go." She had him reconsidering. "It's Kira and Lacus."

"Fine," he caved upon hearing their names. Kira and Lacus had grown to be close friends of theirs over the past two years of university. "Wait, why does Lacus need to go to the hospital?" He sounded concerned.

"Oh, she needs to get a bunch of vaccines before she can go on that ecoadventure volunteering trip that the two of them are doing together this summer. It's actually only a medical clinic, but I felt the drama would compel you to have a change of heart."

"You evil wench."

"Thanks!" She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. She didn't know when she'd fallen into the habit of kissing his cheek, but it just felt like the most natural course of action. Only she ever kissed his cheek, but he did not seem to mind. In fact, he'd once told her that his flavour of the month tried kissing him on the cheek and he shrank away. He said it left an awkward aftertaste. The thought that she was special in her own quirky way pleased her.

"Wait, so Lacus can go away with Kira for months but can't go to the hospital with him?" He inquired, worried that he'd been suckered into the tedious task of waking Cagalli with a lie.

"They aren't going to be just the two of them dummy. Its a whole group of students going."

"Dummy?" Athrun raised an eyebrow, "You shouldn't be talking."

"Fine, fine Mr. Grumpypants, I'm the dummy in this relationship." She rolled her eyes, but he was too focused on the commercial on screen to notice. "Now I'm going to sleep early, lest we reenact that monopoly morning after tragedy."

"That was over a year ago!" He exclaimed when he finally remembered what she was referring to.

"It was the last time you had to wake me up." She reasoned. "Good night." She squeezed him briefly and pecked his cheek one final time before sauntering off to her room.

7:58 am the next morning found Athrun inside Cagalli's room. He skipped the knocking step because he had memorized the response it garnered.

"Wake up dummy." He said, shaking her.

"Five more minutes," she asked as usual, turning away.

"Do you have an algorithm that tells you exactly what to say in these situations?" He asked, baffled by the exactness of her response.

"Can you please not speak to me like an engineer this early?" She said sarcastically, burrowing herself into her sheets.

"Then wake up."

"Five. Please."

"No. Up, up!"

"Stop talking please." At least early morning Cagalli knew her magic words and used them generously.

"Get out of bed and I'll stop talking." He bribed.

"Tired," she said, followed by, "Sleepy."

"I thought you went to bed early because you wanted to avoid this situation."

"Meer called and cried about being dumped at like two in the morning."

"So?"

"For three hours."

"And I care because?"

"Your primary concern is my health and well being?"

"Bull shit."

"Come on, have a heart. Five minutes is all I'm asking."

"When and where are you meeting Lacus?"

"Bio building. Front door. 9 am. Why?"

"I'd rather go in your stead than stand here and watch you not wake up." He said in defeat.

"Really? I would be eternally in your debt."

"Yeah, yeah. Sleep it off." Before she could find her way out of the covers to thank him properly he'd left, closing her bedroom door on the way out. She stared dreamily at the spot where he stood with a dorky grin on her face.

Athrun had no problem finding Lacus and Kira who were surprised to see him in place of the expected blond. As he entered the medical clinic, his pocket vibrated thrice at the arrival of a text message.

_You failed to wake me once again. Thanks._

_

* * *

_"Make sure you wake me up at 8, okay?"

There were two more months before we both graduated from university. The four years they had spent together had flown by. They had worked themselves seamlessly into the community that resided at their condominium. The little kids in the neighbouring homes would run up to them calling out "big brother" and "big sister". There were only two more months of that left.

They'd once talked about post graduation plans. They'd both assumed that they'd return to their roots. Neither of them were from this city although they came to love it over their four years of residency. The conversation, started by Cagalli, had been bittersweet.

"What do you plan to do after you graduate," she asked one night when they sat out on the veranda overlooking the busy Saturday nightlife with a simple dinner and martinis.

"Get a job I guess." He said nibbling at an olive from his drink.

"Back home?" For a long time Cagalli had assumed that they'd continue like this forever. But faced with the end of school, reality came to realization. They each had wildly different lives and would eventually marry one of the many people they'd continue to date and have children. They might run into each other at the supermarket occasionally, but that was only if they were in the same city.

"I have been applying mainly to companies in this city." He said, absently stirring his drink with the bare toothpick. "Why? Are you going back?"

"If I can't find a job I like here, I might as well." She shrugged.

"Your parents would like that." Athrun said casually. After all, she'd been home for two weeks in the past four years.

"I don't think they'd care." Her voice was aloof and sad in the way people sounded when they pitied others - she sounded removed.

"Parents always care." He said neutrally, wondering how he'd come to know nothing about her family over all this time.

"They love me, they do." She sounded like she was convincing herself. "But they travel so much for business, they always have, that it would not matter if I went back home or moved to China."

"Then move to China." He offered, allowing her the option to change the subject.

"What about you? Your parents would like you back home." When she thought about it, Athrun only ever went home for the day, never staying overnight.

"My parents are dead." He finished the last of his drink. "I like this city much better than my hometown. Fewer memories."

"Happier memories." Cagalli hated saying _I'm sorry_ when hearing about deaths of strangers. It was so insincere to her. Instead she tried to cheer him up via diversion. "Me!"

"Yes," Athrun smiled, looking at her, "You." He'd have to find another roommate or move into a smaller house in a few months. The thought was more depressing tonight than it had been for the past few months.

"Well, I'm applying to a few openings in this city, but if they don't work out for me, I'm probably going to end up working within my family business."

"Sounds like you're settling."

"Not at all! There are only a few jobs that catch my attention around here. Whereas my father's business has a lot of potential careers for me. You know me - interest over location." She felt awkward saying the last sentence. It felt untrue, as if location was suddenly of more importance.

"Hmm, that makes sense considering you are the sole heir of one of the most influential global business in history." Athrun took a small bite of the sandwich on his plate.

"You knew?" She asked, mildly surprised at how well informed he was. Most people did not recognize her name.

"Yula Athha - I know the name. It's a behind the scenes corporation but has major influence on the flow of global economy." He smiled and it warmed her from the inside out. "I didn't make a big deal of it because it isn't a big deal. At the end of the day, you're still you despite your roots."

"You are being too nice. Did you spike one of the sandwiches and accidentally mix them up?" She laughed, a little uncomfortable suddenly.

"Possibly, I can't seem to do things right anymore." He admitted, unsure of why he said that or what it meant.

After that their conversation went to the mistakes Cagalli had made as a child which had amused her babysitters to no end. Athrun spoke a little about his mother and even less about his father. Their tangents led them astray and far, far away from the saddening issue of graduation.

Athrun was pulled out his reminiscing by Cagalli blowing lightly into his ear. He jumped out of his skin, startled by the unexpected sensation. "What was that for?"

"You spaced out and would not respond to anything else I tried." She said, resuming her cross legged position on the couch. "You know what I was just thinking about?"

"That dinner we had a couple weeks ago?" He asked, knowing he'd guess correctly by the surprise in her eyes. "What about it?"

"Remember, I told you I was applying to a few positions in this city." She started.

"Yeah..." He turned his attention to the television. The sadness he felt that night at the reality of ending this life was creeping back into him and this was his way of avoiding it.

"Well, I got a response from one of the companies. It's a fifteen minute walk away from here and I absolutely love the job, the company everything." She reached over to his laptop and pulled up the website of a young marketing firm. "It's a small firm but it's pioneering some interesting strategies, especially in this recession."

"That's great." He tried not to sound too excited. If she was employed so close to this condominium, maybe, just maybe he wouldn't have to hunt for another roommate. "When is it?"

"At 9:30 am." Her face fell and his excitement faded. "That's why I need you to wake me up at 8 am."

"That..." He didn't know what to say. He had never succeeded in waking her up that early before.

"I may not get another interview in this area," she said in a monotone, watching the muted ads on TV. She wanted him to know how desperately important it was that she make it to that interview. She didn't know why, she just knew the desperation of the importance. Yet, she couldn't communicate the urgency. She'd imparted so many things to him - some which were happier, more embarrassing, less logical, everything. Still, she felt stuck in this particular context.

"I'll try," he said pulling her out of her frantic thinking. "I'll put all the practical knowledge I've accumulated over the past four years to some good use." He joked.

"Oh god, more engineering jargon in the morning?" She recalled bitterly.

"It turns you on!"

"You wish."

"Don't lie to me, heartbreaker."

"I'm not like your barbie girlfriends, ladykiller."

"You are blond though."

And so the mood was lightened until Cagalli retired at midnight. She set out all the things she was to take to the interview neatly on her desk. She laid out her neatly ironed suit on the chair. It was the first time in her 21 years that she'd prepared for the next morning before bed.

The next morning did not come soon enough for Athrun. He was at her door at 7:58 as usual. He had not slept at all the night wondering how to wake her on time. He'd come up with a plan but was too shy, too unsure of himself to execute it. Yet, he was at her bed with nothing else to go on.

"Cagalli," He said softly, shaking her gently.

She stirred a little and mumbled, "Five more minutes."

"Okay," he agreed not putting up the usual fight. He knelt beside her bed and watch her sleep. Her rich golden hair framed her pale face exotically, making her look like a middle eastern princess. He noticed a lot of things from this proximity. She had faint freckles across her nose and long straight lashes. She slept with her mouth closed and did not drool, contrary to what he imagined. She slept on her stomach, which must say something about her personality; he just didn't know what.

When five minutes had passed, he called her name again, softly. "Cagalli." He almost spoke it into her ear.

"Five. Please." She muttered, flicking her hand across her ear to dispel the tickle that linger from Athrun's words.

Instead of reminding her that five minutes had already passed and that it was 8:03, he blew gently into her ear. She reflexively raised her shoulder, to shrug away the sensitive feeling. "What?" She asked, her words sleep. Her eyelids parted just enough to see his face in a blur of azure, green and cinnamon.

He leaned into her ear. "I love you." The breathy words lingered in her ear.

"Mm," she moaned with a happy smile on her face. _He loves me_, she echoed.

_Wait_.

_What!?_

She shot up in bed and stared at the spot where Athrun had knelt. He was no longer there. She bolted out of bed and checked his room. Empty. Following the sound of crackling oil, she dashed to the kitchen where Athrun was donning his apron as the oil heated in a pan before him.

"What!?" She said out loud, sounding panicked and distraught. She had no explanation for her rash behaviour if she had dreamt it, which was a significant possibility.

"You're up. That's great." He said, his voice happy at his accomplishment.

She knew it wasn't her dreams when he did not turn to greet her with a cocky grin splayed at the thought of him finally winning. "Did you mean it?"

"Go shower. I'll have breakfast ready when you get out." He continued, ignoring her much to her irritation.

She stormed up to him and took him by the elbow, forcing him to face her. Staring into his eyes, she asked again, "Did you mean it?"

"Ah, this version of Cagalli is scary." He said with a pleasant smile on his face.

"Did you?" Her deadpan voice would take no prisoners. Athrun knew better than to push her any further.

"Maybe." He stared back, the intensity of his gaze terrifying a part of her.

"Maybe?" What kind of an answer was that? It didn't even constitute as an answer.

He sighed, well aware that they were both capable of extreme stubbornness. If this dragged on, the point of waking up early would be lost. "Go shower, get dressed, lets have breakfast and then you go to you interview." Cagalli opened her mouth to interrupt, but he didn't let her. "If you get the job, I'll tell you. Okay?"

She stared into his emerald eyes searching for an answer. She must have either found the answer or crumbled from frustration for she stormed off to the bathroom. Athrun continued to cook an elaborate breakfast to distract him from the undeniable stupidity of his most recent actions. He knew that Cagalli was not naive enough to miss the fact that he insisted on secrecy till she secured the job to avoid holding her back in this city. Of course, if she wanted to stay for him who was he to stop her? While part of him believed this, another part of him did not want to keep her from her ambitious dreams. They'd had four years together; yet the topic of them arose only now, when it seemed too late. They were so radically different from the types of people they each liked to date that it might not work out. Friendships were infinitely less complex than relationships. He'd rather she stayed for more than just him. This way there would be less to regret.

He'd just finished setting the table when she stepped into the kitchen fully dressed with the exception of shoes. She wore a while pencil skirt suit which accentuated her figure immaculately.

"I fucking hope the HR manager is male." He half-joked, admiring her from head to toe.

"You don't think I can get the job on my credentials?" She took a seat. Her posture said she was offended.

"I do." He corrected, "but if the HR manager is a guy you'll definitely land the job. I don't think he'll even remember the other candidates."

Cagalli chuckled. "Jealous?" She asked coyly.

"Of all of them," he replied, referring to all the boys and men she'd dated.

"I told you it'd happen." She grinned, scooping a large spoonful of scrambled eggs into her mouth.

"You win." He admitted defeat, which was a rare sight.

"I deserve a reward, yes?" She said innocently.

"I put mushrooms in the eggs." She laughed, appreciating the mushrooms.

They finished eating soon after. Breakfast was always a short meal in their household. They were both quick eaters unless it was a martini night.

She stepped into stilettos that matched her hair and eyes. Athrun was still taller than her and was shocked that she could walk in those shoes.

"Good luck," he said, seeing her to the door.

"What if I want a different reward?" She asked, turning to facing him from the hallway.

"Hmm?"

"Did you mean it?" She asked earnestly.

Athrun shook his head. "I told you what you need to do to earn that one."

She frowned, displeased with the answer. "Good luck," He said again turning his cheek so that she could kiss him goodbye as she usually did when she left earlier than him.

"I'm impatient!" She reasoned, hoping he'd cave into her wishes in fear of her bombing her interview because of the distraction he'd inflicted on her. When he didn't turn his head to look at her or acknowledge her plea, she resigned for the time being. He turned his head to face her as she leaned in to kiss him and their lips brushed together. Both their eyes were closed and neither of them dared open them, afraid that they would wake into another reality. He pulled away after his lips had lingered over hers for a few seconds.

It wasn't a real kiss - well it was real. It wasn't complete; it was only half a kiss.

"Keep going on that till you earn what you want," he said, "now go."

He pulled back into their condo and watched her till she reached the elevator, wondering what it was about her queer personality that attracted him to her so magnetically. She left without a word - no good bye. Her eyes had widened with surprise which morphed into a giddy happiness that translated into her smile and her walk. She knew.

It hadn't been an accident.

* * *

**The End

* * *

**

Oh dear.

I want so badly to write the next scene but I just _know_ my pervy, pervy mind will write salacious near-porn which will corrupt the masses. But, if you are old enough, imagine it! Hint: They probably sleep in the same bedroom. D:

This idea morphed as I wrote it but still stayed quite true to the original idea. I want a full fledged story about these two kids in university! There is so much high school fiction, so logically, university!fic must exist. I hope to god it does or I might feel wrongfully compelled to create some. If you know of any such stories, please guide me to them - for both our sakes.

It is way late but I _needed_ to finish this tonight or it would remain incomplete forever! I have a hard time writing one-shots over multiple days. (What? You wish it remained incomplete forever? Oh noes.) I hope I can resume normal functioning tomorrow.

ps. I also wonder if there is any gundam fiction that is rated less than T. Is that even possible? Should we even be given such options?


End file.
